Dallas Cowboys NFL #95 Chad Hennings Photo - New
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Chad William Hennings (born October 20, 1965 in Elber, Iowa) is a former American football defensive lineman for the Air Force Academy Falcons, and Dallas Cowboys. He won the Outland Trophy in his senior year of college. Despite facing an obligation to enter the Air Force upon graduating the Academy, he was drafted in the eleventh round of the 1988 NFL Draft by the Cowboys, and played in the National Football League, winning three Superbowls.
Because of his Air Force military commitment (originally 8 years), he dropped in the 1988 NFL Draft until the Cowboys took a chance and drafted him in the 11th round with no indication of an early out from the Air Force. After the 1991 Gulf War, the United States military underwent an across the board reduction in budget and Hennings was able to have the remaining four years of his active-duty commitment (service academy and rated pilot) waived, which was unprecedented at the time. He continued service in the Air Force Reserve for nine years as a liaison officer to the Air Force Academy after his separation from active duty, then went into the Individule Ready Reserve.
While entering into the NFL, there were some rumors about the Cowboys trading him to the Denver Broncos, but when Jimmy Johnson saw his workout for the team, those plans were canceled.
In 1992, he left the Air Force and joined the Dallas Cowboys as a 27-year-old rookie, quickly becoming a key reserve, on one of the best defensive line rotations in the NFL.
In 1996 he became a starter, replacing Russell Maryland who left via free agency to the Oakland Raiders.
While his play on the field was very good, it was his attitude, character and leadership that was also valuable to the Cowboys teams of that decade, contributing to the top ranked defenses of the early nineties and winning 3 Super Bowls in 4 years.
He spent nine seasons with the team, amassing 28 sacks, six fumble recoveries, four return yards and one touchdown in 107 games before retiring after missing half of the 2000 season with injuries.
Hennings is married and has two children. Following his football career, Hennings became a Christian motivational speaker and author. His self-help book for men, "Rules of Engagement: Finding Friendship, Faith, and Strength in a Disconnected World" was published in 2009.
